Blog Love (Kind of): Slate's Political Facebook Feeds

For awhile there, I read everything there was to read on Slate.com. You have probably noticed, as I have brought your attention to a thing or two over there. I've lost my obsessive interest in it and have dramatically reduced how much I read on it, though I still check it many, many times each day.


...moment of self-reflection for how messed-up that statement is, especially 'cause it is pure truth...

I need Internet rehab.

whatever.

ahem.

But the one thing Slate does that I still just 100% adore is their mock Barack Obama Facebook feeds. Probably because I am a nerd. But c'mon!
"John Allen Muhammad sent a friend request to the Supreme Court.
John Roberts: Yeah, no."

Comedy gold!!

Shut up, it has more effect with the Facebooky formatting.

Anyway, check it out: Here's the most recent one, and then this post has all the past feeds.

Pop Culture Thoughts

First, an update on my life:
I have two goals for this weekend/really not a weekend since I don't have class Monday so more like pre-Thanksgiving trip time:
1) stop having a cold
2) finish my policy brief

This may sound simple but it is going to be a challenge.

Now to the culture:

- Since this blog is Waitress-inspired, I feel compelled to tell you that on Wednesday I saw We Were Soldiers which stars Keri Russell, among others (including Jon Hamm!!). The only other thing really noteworthy about the movie-watching experience is that there was a horrrrrrrrrendously traumatizing shot of a guy's skin being pulled off after he had been burned from an explosion. I had to read Hiroshima in 8th grade and there was a description of this woman's hand that had the skin peeled off that was so vivid and awful and I have never fully recovered from reading it. And now I have the visuals to go along with it. THANKS, We Were Soldiers.

-The Project Runway finale was super boring and I was quite underwhelmed by the collections. I came in rooting for Carol Hannah and she had some great pieces but it just didn't come together as a collection. Every piece was so disparate and I didn't see the connections between the colors that she was going for. Also that one outfit with the blue satin hood situation was really offensive to my eyes. But I do want to own that upside-down triangle dress. Irina's collection was fine but it was nothing new, and though it's been said many times, I liked the collection better when Jillian did it. Out of no where though, I found myself rooting for Althea to win! What? I dunno, her collection was cohesive without being all one color (Irina) and I SO want to own that giant blue sweater thing. But alas, it was not to be. The only time my favorite has won has been with Leanne and Chloe. And in reruns, I agree with Jay's win.

- I really want to see An Education but I don't think it's going to get to Bloomington. :/

- I could really do without the Twilight frenzy. Mostly because when I see the New Moon previews I am annoyed at how shoddy the CGI wolves look. Also, Taylor Swift: I have issues with you dating Taylor Laudner. You have the same name. This is not acceptable. I mean, who was the last famous person to date someone with her same name? Paris Hilton. One should be diligent about avoiding all things Paris Hilton has done in her life.

And one more thought:

What the HELL is going on with oncology right now?!?!?

Hotlanta

I went to Atlanta this weekend! What did I do with my short time there? Well, I think I made the most of it. I saw just about everybody I know who still lives there, except for a few people who were unluckily out of town this weekend. Most of them I saw on purpose but I even had some chance sightings of friends too which was a lovely surprise.

I went to Flip-Flops, which is a bar/dance place in Midtown that I have great affection for despite it's tacky decor and overpriced drinks. I hiked Stone Mountain on possibly the best day for a hike that has ever existed. Ever. I had a family dinner with my SAS fam. I played games, I watched Cake Boss, I made dinner with Trader Joe's food. I went on a scholar dinner, and discovered that, while still very fun, scholar dinners lack a certain something when you know you won't be reimbursed $20. I went to Rise n' Dine, Loehmann's, and the bank. I played with pets, and listened to some adorable kids with Southern accents. It was a good weekend. And despite lack of sleep, I think the big city energy and sunshine I soaked up will make me ready to take on Monday.

ATL Pie: Chicken pot pie with pesto, feta, and sundried tomatoes.

Yesterday, I flew on Friday the 13th, out of Gate A13, in seat 13A, on flight Delta 1613. And I lived to tell the tale.

*Bows*

*Knocks on wood*

Poem from the Indianapolis Airport Gate A13 Window

Night has settled,
draping this suspended, metal-winged bird
in gentle darkness,
Inside stillness breathes,
perched between the hum and glow
of a cabin nearly asleep.

I gaze through a
small plastic-glass window,
my territory for the moment,
resting, reflecting
on news read,
a conversation had,
a journey at hand,
contemplating stars
across a lit and living landscape,
and our small yet perfect place
within them.

How sweetly we slice the two,
Heaven and Earth,
or stitch them together
on our journeys
of destination and heart,
while watchful eyes of earth and sky
wink at each other as they
pass on their rotations.

Aviators, aeronauts,
common travelers all,
we are simply passing through
at our own speed,
in our own way.

The Internet: Love/Hate

It's pretty well known that the Internet has made many things in life easier. And so we tend to think it makes things better. I have been known to sing the highest praises of Google maps, that recipe finder thing where you can see what you can make with what you have in your kitchen, online shopping, and I AM writing a blog right now. So I can't totally hate on the internet, obviously.

However, I have recently been planning my trip to India. And it's interesting, because I feel like I need to know everything there is to know about the hotels and safaris we are booking. I want reviews, I want pictures, I want to make absolutely sure it's a good, safe, clean, etc. place. But imagine what planning this trip would have been like even 10 years ago. I wouldn't be able to know anything! I'd have to get a travel agent, or just show up and see how it goes. And that honestly sounds kind of liberating. Since we can know everything, or so we think in this Internet age, if you make a mistake, it's your fault. It's because you didn't do your homework. My mom told me that she used to plan trips by calling the Chambers of Commerce of cities and asking for their brochures and other tourist info. I mean, there is so much potential risk out there, I get it, that we want to figure out how to mitigate it. But, ugh, sometimes I think it might be okay if I make a new recipe, go to a new restaurant, buy a new backpack, without reading what 25 other people have to say about it first! I always check reviews first! Always. That's loopy when you think about it, right?

Time to break free from the chains.

I don't know how the breaking free is going to be achieved, exactly.

I'll keep you posted.

Happiness Project and other updates

There is this blog on Slate called The Happiness Project. I started reading it cause it is updated a lot and the posts are short and kind of interesting, but I always thought it was sort of trite. It recommends all kinds of too-easy solutions for how to make yourself happier, some of them are downright offensive to my way of life, especially her suggestion that making your bed everyday will make you happier. (!?!?! Nothing makes me angrier than making my bed! What a pointless routine! I am only going to make it messy again in 12 hours!!! What a ridiculous construct of society that we have to make our beds! No one sees them! Who cares! ahem...anywayyyy...that's how I feel about making the bed.) But anyway, I kept reading it, and I have found myself thinking back on tips and things that I have read on there pretty often. Like one of the posts was about how its important to get up and move around the office every so often; it makes your work day happier. So during my 8 hour work day I plan out when I am going to get up and walk around, whether it's to go to the kitchen, or to see my boss, or to stop for a minute and do some volunteer-style jobs like sorting the food in the pantry to get up. And I try to spread out my "get up and move around" activities so I don't become sucked into the computer screen of zombie-ness.

Anyway, so yesterday I found out that I didn't get this internship that I very much wanted and felt confident about. And I found myself thinking back to yet another Happiness Project post, where she quoted something her mom told her when she became editor of the Yale Law Review:

"That's so wonderful! Be grateful, because you worked hard for what you got, and you deserved it, but others also worked hard, and people don’t always get what they deserve."

I think this is a real truth that is very comforting and humbling. When you are hired, or elected, or chosen, or what have you, it tends to feel like a validation of how awesome you are and how you're the best. Which makes it feel like crap when you are on the other end of that stick. When the reality is, that there are too many deserving people for most things, so your being picked for something is a validation in some sense, but it's also just that you got lucky a bit and you should be grateful for that bit of luck that pushed you over the edge of the other people into getting the award/job/whatever.

Now that ends the philosophical portion of this blog. Now it's time for...

Updates on my life!

Major one: I am going to INDIAAAA. and I am very excited. It'll be for about two weeks over Christmas break. The itinerary includes Varanasi, Jodhpur, Jaipur, Ranthambore, Agra, and Udaipur. Anyone with travel tips please post them! The itinerary and planning stuff has not exactly been a piece of cake. It is quite something else to plan an international trip. This is obvious, but it just becomes oh-so-clear when you have to actually do it. It's fun though, and I am excited to hear Bollywood music in the streets (I have been taking a Bollywood DanceFit class--it's awesome--and I get so pumped for the trip after class every week) and see the sights and the tigers and the whole shebang.

Car: I have a headlight out, and apparently its an electrical problem. The dealer wanted me to pay $1100 to fix it. Soooo that's been a fun project in my life trying to figure out how to fix it without paying that completely ridiculous price. I love my car, but I am buying a damn Toyota or Honda next time.

School: Midterms are over! Insanely happy about that.

New life goal: To intern at the White House Domestic Policy Council this summer.

Pie/other food: I recently made a mixed berry pie for a dinner with all my housemates. It was delish.

I made this dish a few nights ago and it was also delish. And easy. And cheap. It's from GroupRecipes. I omitted the olives, cause olives are gross.